


Reboot (4) - The Chevrolet Blazer

by Prisca



Series: Reboot-Universe [4]
Category: Jeremiah (TV), The Faculty (1998)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Crossover, M/M, Reboot-Universe
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-27
Updated: 2015-12-27
Packaged: 2018-05-10 01:19:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5563228
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prisca/pseuds/Prisca
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>From the downfall of the old world and the beginning of a new one.</p><p>Casey has managed it to kill the alien queen, but her death caused a virus which killed almost every adult within some weeks.<br/>Now it's up to the children to find a way to survive ...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reboot (4) - The Chevrolet Blazer

**Author's Note:**

> This will not be a WIP with who-knows-how-much chapters but a universe I want to play with. There will be a central theme running trough all the stories, but mostly stand-alone chapter. It takes place in a world after the Big Death (Jeremiah) but it will mainly tell the story of Casey & Zeke (The Faculty). You don't need to know anything about Jeremiah or The Faculty to read these stories, but if you do some elements will be quite familiar for you. Not movie-conform!
> 
> ***
> 
> This chapter is a kind of a sequel of 'Reboot (3) - A mysterious man - so you should make sure that you read that first

>It was a starry and slightly warm night when Casey sneaked out of the hotel. Deep inside he felt lousy but there was no way that he changed his mind again. He had tried it for weeks. He had tried to settle down and to move on. Like most of them did. Everyone had to face serious losses, had to fight down nightmares and fears. But all of them strove for one goal: they wanted to survive. Last weekend they even did celebrate a birthday, Jamie's, though no one knew where or when he was born.

“It was cold outside,” one morning Jamie had told Stokely. Finally he started to talk again, at least now and then.  
“And my Mom always made me a cake.”

That night Stokes tried her hand at baking. The result was not perfect, but the cake made Jamie laugh … for the first time since he did show up here. Yes, life started to move on for most of them, despite the circumstances.

Casey had tried to believe that one day also he would be able to leave his memories behind. He liked it to be here in the Marriott Hotel. For the first time in his life he had true friends who cared about him. More than his parents had ever done. Of course, they always did what they thought was best for him. But Casey had always known that he was one big disappointment for both of them with his all dreams of art and classic novels they couldn't understand.

He had spent a lot of time together with Delilah and little Greta lately. She was a sunshine, just babbling her first words, laughing most of the day. She didn't know anything about the old world, about aliens, the Big Death and the loss of her parents. He had always felt better together with her.

But then … a stranger changed everything, a misterous guy with even more mysterious prophecies . Sometimes he wished he had listened to Zeke and hadn't let him stay. But no, this was impossible. The man had told him: _You can't escape your fate_. It seemed as if he was right. There had been no chance that Casey could send him away. He had to stay here because he was the messenger.

And now Casey needed to go. Worst of all: without any Goodbye. He couldn't risk it that Zeke did find out. Casey could remember all to well how he had threatened to lock him up in his room if he didn't stop thinking about this guy.

“He was a stupid freak,” he had told him.  
“He's gone and he will never be back. Forget him!”

“He knew about MaryBeth,” Casey had protested.  
“No one outside of Herrington knows what is really happened.”

“The world can change, people don't. They love to talk shit. During my trips to Columbus and elsewhere I hear a lot of rumors. He doesn't know more than others do, Case, and he builds up his own stories.”

“But he was damned close to the truth, don't you think so?”

This had been more than two weeks ago. They hadn't talked about it anymore, but Casey knew it was not that easy to fool Zeke. He always kept an eye on him. When the nightmares started to fade away he had asked him: 'No bad dreams tonight?' and he had looked suspicious as if he knew that something was going on.

Casey had forced a smile onto his face.  
“I'm fine,” he had assured him.  
“Seems like I start to get over it. It's time to move on, isn't it?”

Yes, it **was** time to move on. The night he had made the decision to leave Herrington, to follow the message the guy had given him, had been the last he dreamed about MaryBeth. It felt like a sign that he finally was going to do the right thing. He still needed some more days to make plans. To study the maps he had found in the library. To get some stuff from the kitchen to help him during the first time. To pack his backpack with warm clothes, a blanket, some useful items. He had never been on a camping trip with his dad or in a summer-camp and he wasn't sure what would await him. So hard to figure out what would be most important out there. Sometimes he felt the urge to ask Zeke for help, he would have known the answers of most his questions. But this was impossible. Zeke would never let him go.

Finally he wrote the letter, a long letter, the try to explain why he did what he did. When he closed the envelope he smiled sadly and wrote one last word: Marie. First he had tried to write Zeke, in vain. Maybe better that way. Zeke hated every pathetic drama. And it would have been hard to stay calm with the thought in his mind, that he was not only going to leave Zeke but probably never would never see him again.

+++

Casey sighed slightly and threw a last look at the grave of his parents. The only goodbye he allowed himself. Zeke and Stan had buried their remains in the garden behind the house while he still had been without consciousness, fighting to return to life. The house, the garden, the pride and joy of his mom. All day long she had made plans for planting flowers or setting up new vegetable beds. Now it was deserted already for months, the weed started to take over the garden, the wooden stairs of the porch had ended somewhere in a fire, two windows were broken, the curtains torn apart. Probably someone did sneak into the house, taking all he could need. There wouldn't be much left.

Casey didn't care. It didn't mean anything for him. After his recovery he did return into the house only once, to get some stuff from his room. The old camera, his grandpa had given him when he was about twelve years old. Some of his books. His PC he had spent most of his free time with and the horror videos he had to hide from his mom under the loose board in the closet were left behind. In a world without electricity he wouldn't need it.

In the last moment he had grabbed the picture from the mantelpiece in the living room. Christmas, two years ago, Casey with his parents, all of them smiling, hugging each other. He had never liked this pic, it was just a fake to show off a happy family. Nevertheless, now it was carefully put away in his backpack, wrapped in one of his T-shirts. Together with the camera … which was stupid, because he would probably never again be able to develop a film. Ballast he actually couldn't afford, but no way that he left it behind.

When he looked up he noticed that it was time to go. It would start to dawn soon enough and he wanted to be a fair way off when the others at the hotel would wake up. As soon as Marie found the letter she would tell Zeke … and Zeke would curse and search after him. Hopefully in the wrong direction. Casey had decided not to take the direct way, he would go into the West first, large woods lay between Herrington and Columbus where he could hide … just in case ...

“Hey, you're early up today.”

Casey flinched and jerked around. No, no, no! He stared at Zeke who was leaning against a tree nearby. All his plans seemed to end in smoke. But this couldn't be. He couldn't go back to the hotel together with him. Because he would probably never ever again find the courage to leave. He would be stuck in Herrington forever and … and what? He actually didn't know. But the words were always in his mind:

'The fate of the humankind won't be solved in Herrington. You need to go to Thunder Mountain. Only then the world can be saved.'

Zeke eyed him with slightly raised eyebrows.  
“Why didn't you tell me that you wanted to go out? I would have come with you!”

Casey swallowed and tried to put on his best stubborn face.  
“Maybe I simply want to be alone for a while,” he snapped.  
“Stop making such a fuss about me. You are not my mom, you know!”

Zeke flinched visibly.  
“No,” he said in a low voice.  
“No, I'm not. I'm just a friend who cares about you!”

And Casey knew how much he had hurt him. Tears welled up in his eyes, but he fought them back.  
“Sorry,” he murmured.  
“I didn't mean to yell at you. It's just … sometimes … it gets too much. I'm just not used to it that people care about me … not like that. At the hotel it's almost impossible to be alone. And I need some time for myself.”

Zeke nodded.  
“I get that. So you want me to leave you alone?”

Inwardly he cringed but it needed to be done.  
“Give me a moment, Zeke, please,” he said and wondered how it was possible that his voice wasn't trembling.  
“I will follow you soon enough.”

“Okay!”  
Zeke turned around, but he didn't leave.  
“When will be soon? One hour? A week? Or maybe never?”

Casey groaned and squeezed his eyes shut. He didn't dare to move.

“Do you think I'm that blind, Casey? The food you took from the kitchen. The backpack you tried to hide in the utility room. Last night when you put Greta to bed … it was not a good-night-kiss, it was a goodbye.

Am I right? Do you try to sneak away without a word?”

Casey was fighting with words. It made no sense to deny it any longer.  
“You would have tried to hold me back,” he said, refusing to look at him.  
“And probably you are right and it's stupid to take his words so serious. But I can't help it. A lot of what he said is true. I **did** kill MaryBeth. So you can say I'm the reason for the Big Death … even if the plan was another one. I need to go and find out if there is some more truth in his message.”

“You didn't even know where to go,” Zeke said.  
“Thunder Mountain … never heard about this before.”

A memory made Casey smile.  
“Stan says, it's an attraction at Disneyland. Scares the shit out of you, he says.”

“Huh?”  
Zeke frowned.  
“You want to go to Cali? Disneyland?”

No!”  
Casey decided to tell the truth, he couldn't lie to him any longer. Zeke needed to understand … or he would never let him go.  
“I don't think it's Disneyland. It's somewhere in the North. A town, a place, a mountain, I don't know. But I will find out as soon as I reach it.””

“Now you almost talk like he does,” Zeke said in a low voice.

Casey smiled slightly.  
“I'm a geek, remember? A  geek is supposed to talk like that."

“You are a stubborn little shit.”  
To Casey's relief he was smiling, a least a bit.  
“You always was. When you are wildly resolved to save the world nothing can stop you.”

Casey couldn't hold back any longer and threw his arms around Zeke.  
“I will be back,” he murmured.  
“I don't know how long it will last, but I promise, I will come back to Herrington.”  
They both knew well enough that this was highly unlikely. An unknown world was waiting for him, nameless danger and unpredictability. But he would do his best …

“Of course you will.”  
Zeke held him tight.  
“Because I will make sure of it.”

“Huh?”  
Casey looked up to him.  
“What do you mean?”

Finally Zeke let go him.  
“Get your stuff together,” he said … as if this was an answer.  
“I guess it's time to go.”

“But I can't come back with you,” Casey wanted to protest when he noticed that Zeke didn't listen any longer but already was leaving the garden. As if there was nothing more to talk about. Haltingly he followed him.  
“Please, Zeke, don't force me to … wow!"

He stopped dead and stared at the parking lot in front of him. How long was it that he had seen an intact car on the roads? It seemed to be in another time, another world. A world where no one could imagine a life without energy, without TV, internet, phone, without trains, planes … Now the cars were standing around almost everywhere, broken up, cleared out, a shelter for all kind of animals … useless like so much everyone had taken for granted. But the dark-blue, big car in front of him was in a good state … and he had never seen it before.

“Holy shit,” he murmured.  
"What is this?"

“A Chevrolet Blazer!”  
Zeke chuckled.  
“Not as cool as the good old GTO, but quite okay and enough room for some stuff.”

“It's yours?”  
Casey blinked.  
“But where do you get the gas from? The hotel? Gabe will kill you when he finds out.”

“Naw, he won't!”  
Zeke shook the head.  
“And you're wrong. The gas the hotel needs for the generator and the Jeep … where did it come from? I'm the one how knows where to get it, this and a lot of other stuff too. So it's actually mine and I can do with it whatever I want.”

Casey had to admit that there was some truth in it. Nevertheless …  
“Maybe you're right,” he said slowly.  
“But … do you think about all the others at the hotel? They need the gas more than you do. Don't be selfish, Zeke. It's not the time for it.”

“You are the saint, Casey, not me,” Zeke said and smirked.  
“They always got what was needed. And this also won't change in the future. I've left Stokes a notice with some names. Good guys, I can trust. And a plan where she will find the old barn. There is still a lot left, cigarettes, whiskey, batteries … you can get whatever you want when you offer stuff like that.”

Casey frowned.  
“What are you talking about, Zeke?”

“Someone needs to keep things running when I'm gone. Gabe is doing a good job as a leader. But when it comes to business he's a hopeless case. Stokes is smart, it won't be easy to rip her off. And Stan will keep an eye on her to make sure that she doesn't risk too much.”

Casey's heart beat faster when he started to understand. To leave Herrington together with Zeke would be so much better. No, he was not afraid of whatever could await him. He had already faced the death, had fought an alien queen and despite he had killed her the world around him was broken down. There was not much left what could still frighten him. Only … to be alone again … alone on the road like this mysterious guy who had decided to talk to God to fight his loneliness.

“Why do you want to do this,” he asked.  
“I know you think it's a stupid plan becauseThunder Mountain doesn't even exist.”

Zeke shrugged.  
“To be honest, it's a good reason to leave Herrington behind. I was already thinking about it since ages, I wanted to move to California ... or New York maybe.  After MaryBeth … it was self-protection that I decided to stay here. Nothing else.”

Casey knew that was just half of the truth. Zeke cared about him, about all of them. He had done much to help them through the hard times. But he didn't like to talk about it. He was used to it to live alone, no responsibility for anyone. Maybe he had been a shallow, uncaring guy before MaryBeth, only interested in parties, clubs, girls … but he had changed. And he had decided to come with him on a trip into the dark but to stay back here in Herrington where the others would need him. Casey sighed slightly. As much as he wanted Zeke by his side, it would be too selfish.

“You don't need to think about it, Case,” Zeke tore him out of his thoughts.  
“It's all said. It's either we both go back into the Hotel or you get into the car and we are leaving it together."

**Author's Note:**

> originally posted at my LJ 2013


End file.
